❝watch closely❞

"ELENA!"

Elena startles, her teary eyes snapping from Bonnie to look at Ric as he jogs to them. "Ric?"

"He has Jeremy,"

"What?" Both girls echo the word in disbelief, and Elena shares a panicked look with Bonnie, grabbing her hand as a crutch.

Ric nods, out of breath. "Damon has Jeremy, come on," He gestures for them to follow him, and they do so blindly, missing the evil shimmer that shines through their beloved teacher's eyes.

Elena and Bonnie rush into the empty, dark hallway, away from the students gathered for the dance. Alaric leads them through the hallway towards the cafeteria, his steps heavy and determined as he leads the two girl away from anyone that could save them.

"Where are you taking us?"

"Just a little further," He mutters, his tone dark enough to make the two girls share a wary look at the unusual demeanor.

Elena lets out a shaky breath. "Wait, something's not right," She looks over her shoulder, a chill crawling her spine as she peers into the shadows.

"Where's Jeremy?" Bonnie's tone is harsh, her patience little to none at Alaric's crypticness, and the edge of her looming death.

Alaric stops, his determined look relaxing into a dangerous, smug smile that was so unlike the goodhearted history teacher. "I just had to get away from that dance. The sixties, ugh, not my decade." He makes a disgusted noise and turns around to face them, watching the realization set in on the two girl's faces.

He holds his arms out, shrugging slightly. "I mean, whose call was that, anyway? I much prefer the twenties. The style, the parties, the jazz. Stefan would certainly agree with me, I'm sure."

Elena shares a wary, confused look with Bonnie before looking back to Ric. "Alaric, are you on vervain?"

He stops in his slow steps towards them, an irritated flicker making his mouth twitch with a frown. "Now why would you ask me that question, Elena?"

She takes a wary step away from him, shifting behind Bonnie. "He's being compelled."

"Nope. Try again."

Bonnie holds a protective arm in front of Elena, glaring at Alaric. "What's going on?"

Alaric sighs, put upon by their oblivious questioning. "Okay, I'll give you a hint. I am not Alaric."

He looks at Elena unwaveringly, watching as her face furrows as she processes his words, and puts the puzzle pieces together. She takes in a sharp, shaky breath that almost hurts to exhale. "Klaus."

"Surprise!"

"Oh, no," Elena shakes her head, fear whispering alongside her words. "No, it's not possible."

Klaus waves her off. "Just relax, Elena. I'm not here to hurt you. You're not on my hit list tonight." His eyes flick over to Bonnie, who tenses under his stare. "But you are." 

He charges towards Bonnie, but she swipes her hand out and sends him flying into a row of lockers. He grunts as he hits the metal and slumps to the ground, clenching his teeth as the aches quickly disappear from his temporary body.

He stumbles to his knees, laughing maniacally as he pushes to his feet and fixes the witch with a murderous look in his eyes. "Now, did I mention that I know a witch, too? You're gonna have to hit me a lot harder than that."

Klaus charges at Bonnie again, and she waits for him to get a bit closer to her before she holds her hands out and sends him flying down the hallway into the glass trophy case nearly fifteen feet away.

Glass shatters and drowns out Elena's gasp of horror, but Klaus's laughter is heard easily and it sends chills down both girls' spines.

"By all means, fire away," He pushes himself to his feet again, brushing broken glass off his arms. "If you kill this body, I'll just get a new one. Maybe Jeremy."

"Go. Run." Bonnie doesn't dare take her eyes off the man in front of her as she speaks to Elena. She stumbles backwards shakily and shoves Elena towards the doors, pushing her through them and waving a hand behind her to slam them shut.

They rush through the empty hallway, stopping roughly when Stefan comes through a set of doors with a panicked look on his face. "What happened?"

"Klaus is in Alaric's body,"

Stefan's face drops in disbelief. "What?"

Bonnie shakes her head. "He's possessing it or something,"

Stefan looks at Elena. "Go back to the gym. Now." Elena hesitates, but Stefan echoes his demand again, pushing her the opposite direction.

Elena runs back to the gym, pushing through sweaty, tipsy students she'd normally stop to say hi to. She bumps into Matt and throws a half-hearted apology over her shoulder that has her momentarily losing her focus.

As she spins back around, she falls right into Caroline, who's staring down at her with a hateful glare she's never been on the receiving end of from Caroline. "Care, what are– what are you doing?"

She sighs, and rolls her shoulders back. "I'm doing what needs to be done, Elena." Her hand shoots out and grabs Elena's arm in a deathly tight grip, ignoring the pained yelp she lets out.

Caroline ignores Elena's protests and drags her through the crowded room, back through the doors she'd just run through in an attempt to escape.

Elena pulls against Caroline's grip, trying to pull her old friend off of her. "Caroline, why are you doing this? He's trying to kill me!"

The blonde scoffs. "Where were you when Katherine killed me, huh? Bonnie tried to kill me, just because I was a vampire. But she's willing to die for you?"

She yanks Elena in front of her, into the cafeteria where Klaus is sitting, his feet propped up on a table. "It's always about you, Elena," She spins her old friend around and clutches her neck in a grip that has her struggling for air, and her pink-painted lip pulls back in a snarl. "I'm finally making it about me."

Klaus smirks as he eyes the blonde dressed as the ex-first lady, holding Elena hostage as the witch rushes towards them.

Bonnie's eyes dart frightfully from Elena, to Caroline, and then they flash with betrayal. "Caroline?"

"Oh, don't start, Bonnie," She spits at her old friend, and tightens her grip on Elena's throat just enough to make her stop any words from coming out.

Klaus shakes the knife in his hand tauntingly as he looks at Bonnie. "So, do you want to do this the easy way, or the hard way?"

Bonnie twists her hand, and the bones in his hand snap, making him lose his grip on the knife and drop it on the ground. He groans out as he shifts his bones back into place, but chuckles darkly as he meets Bonnie's gaze again. "The hard way, got it."

As soon as he stands, Bonnie twists her wrist ever so slightly and dislocates his shoulder, making him yell out in pain.

Elena struggles in Caroline's hold, but chokes out Bonnie's name. Her friend sends her an apologetic look as she wipes blood from beneath her nose.

"What? You'd kill your favorite history teacher?"

"It's what Alaric would want. And he'd want you to suffer first."

Klaus chuckles, eyeing the blood trailing from her nose. "Look at you. Is that all you got?"

Bonnie wipes it again, and her eyes shoot worriedly to Elena, before she looks back at Klaus. "Let's find out."

Bonnie yells in pain as she twists her arm, and the lights flicker as Klaus drops to his knees, clutching his leg as it shatters uncontrollably. Flyers shoot off the walls they were pinned to at her exertion, and Elena cries out hoarsely.

"Bonnie!"

"Watch, Elena," Caroline grips her jaw, and forces her to watch Bonnie struggle.

The lights above them shatter and flicker simultaneously, and Klaus pushes himself to his feet again, unwilling to stay down.

The witch yells out, her voice cracking as she strengthens her connection with her ancestors, and the bones snap in his legs once more.

She turns around right as Stefan rushes towards the door, and closes the doors with a flick of her fingers.

"Bonnie, no!"

Stefan hits the glass and his eyes go from Bonnie, to where his girlfriend is being held by Caroline. His eyes widen impossibly, and he smacks his hand on the unmoving doors. "Elena!"

His calls are muffled by the chaos, but the fear in his eyes is obvious to them all. Bonnie regretfully turns her back to him, and faces Klaus once more. She grunts and clenches her fist, stopping Klaus's slow crawl towards her as his bones heal from her relentless torture.

Bonnie looks at Elena as Klaus pulls himself to his feet, healing completely in her lapsed moment.

Elena shakes her head, tears streaming down her cheeks as Caroline tightens her grip on Elena's jaw, forcing her to watch through the mayhem as Bonnie uses the last bit of her life, and her power. "Bonnie, no!"

"Watch, Elena." She grits out. "Watch as someone else dies for you."

Klaus glances over his shoulder at Elena, and then looks back to Bonnie. His fingers flick minutely, but as soon as they do, Bonnie jerks violently, and falls still against the tile.

Caroline immediately lets go of Elena, and the brunette rushes forward in her freedom.

The blonde looks over her shoulder as Stefan shoves the doors open and drops to his knees beside Bonnie and Elena.

"Come on, love," Klaus reaches for her, and she takes his hand, disappearing from the mess they'd left behind.

The sight of Bonnie bleeding and lifeless leaves no pit in her stomach. Just relief.

｡ﾟ•┈୨♡୧┈•ﾟ｡

author's note; i really meant to have the reunion in this chapter, but so much happened,, but we got a SLIVER of klaroline and dark!caroline is my favorite thing ever

edited and published; 11.4.22.

- liz